“Venom” Tops US Friday Box Office, “A Star Is Born” Grabs Second Place

The weekend’s big new releases will predictably place first and second.

“Venom” and “A Star Is Born” unsurprisingly took first and second place, respectively, at the US Friday box office.

“Venom” led the day with $32.8 million in receipts. “A Star Is Born” took second with $15.8 million. Although they are formally positioned as “Friday” figures, the numbers also account for Thursday night screenings.

Based on those performances, “Venom” should close the weekend with $72-82 million. “A Star Is Born” will likely finish with $42-47 million. They will convincingly rank as the weekend’s top two films.

As for Friday, “Smallfoot” took third place with $3.5 million. “Night School” followed at #4 with just under $3.5 million, while a gross of $1.8 million positioned “The House With A Clock In Its Walls” at #5.

— There are no wide newcomers beyond “Venom” and “A Star Is Born” entering the fray this weekend. The buzzy “The Hate U Give” did launch on 36 screens, however. It took home just under $175K from those theaters on Friday.